Development of a computer controlled automated PCB machine

A PCB machine that can draw trace lines and drill holes on a PCB card is developed. The machine consists of a computer, a driving circuit and a mechanical setup. The overall system is operated and controlled from a computer through a program written in Matlab. A relay based driving circuit is developed to perform operations onto the mechanical setup. A communication protocol is established between the computer and the driving circuit through LPT1 port. In this initial work, we demonstrate that the machine successfully draws a trace line and drill holes on two pads which are at both ends of the line. Currently the machine is used only for educational purposes at Microprocessor Control and Instrumentation lab of Kahramanmaras Sutcu Imam University and is utilized at development of educational boards for our labs.